Mariusz Pudzianowski's Blogs

Every Wednesday, Administrative Editor Jordan Breen welcomes a member
of the mixed martial arts media into “Press Row” on the Sherdog.com
blog. This week, Breen is joined by Sherdog.com contributor and
MMARocks.pl editor
Tomasz Marciniak.

Breen and Marciniak take a look at the current state and role that
“freakshow” fights play in the international MMA landscape, keying
in on forthcoming bouts between notorious Polish kickboxer Marcin
Najman and viral video sensation-slash-bodybuilder Robert
Burneika at MMA Attack
2, as well as former “World’s Strongest Man” Mariusz
Pudianowski’s scheduled bout with Bob Sapp at
KSW
19. The two discuss these two particular bouts, their reception
in Poland, why exactly Poland seems to revel in “freakshows” and
what it means for its MMA community.

Tim
Sylvia, speaking Monday on the Sherdog Radio Network’s Savage Dog
Show on whether Mariusz
Pudzianowski was strong: “Not at all. I’ve faced guys in the
gym that were stronger than him. I’m not saying any of the guys I
faced can out-bench-press him or pull a car faster than he can or
throw keg barrels around like he can, because none of us can, but
that’s not what we train for. We train to go against other human
beings that are punching you, kicking you, kneeing you or trying to
out-position you with their hips. I knew the strength was not going
to come into play just because I knew it was MMA. It’s totally
different when someone’s trying to grab you and you’re punching
them in the face and kneeing them in the body.” Read more

It’s easy to root for Mariusz
Pudzianowski when the opposition is Tim Sylvia, an
apathetic former UFC champion who now ambles into a cage north of
300 pounds and refers to himself as a “legend” without a hint of
irony.

Despite the goodwill of the crowd, Pudzianowski’s appeal as an X
factor in MMA came to a gruesome end Friday when Sylvia made quick
and honest work of him during Moosin’s first pay-per-view venture.
Pudzianowski cannot box, cannot wrestle, and cannot tolerate the
acidic build-up of clinching in a fight: he literally turned
fuchsia as his body began to revolt at the request for a new kind
of physical effort. Tapping in the second round was less about
Sylvia’s rubbery strikes than his complete lack of oxygen. Had this
fight been held in Colorado, he may have actually exploded.

There are people who gave Pudzianowski a chance in MMA: “he’s so
strong,” they said. And he is, but not in a way that holds any real
meaning for the sport. A seasoned kickboxer will strike with more
impact because they know how. As an added bonus, they won’t look
sunburned after two minutes of effort. While much has been made of
Pudzianowski’s power, I maintain that most professionals would
rather suffer his attack than Pedro
Rizzo’s.

If Pudzianowski’s status as a sideshow had been more carefully
protected, promoters probably could have milked him for a few more
bouts. (Pudziankowski vs. Gary
Goodridge, Ken Shamrock,
Herschel
Walker -- it’s a long list.) After three fights, it should be a
dead issue. I’m surprised it took this long. Read more

While it has never been easy to be a Tim Sylvia fan
-- the tall, smug fighter is neither an underdog nor ring dynamite
-- the past year has been especially troublesome. Since the former
UFC heavyweight champion defected from that promotion in 2008 to
pursue a big money deal with Affliction, he has endured two losses
in three fights. One of them was forgivable (the loss to King
Fedor) and one was not (a viral video KO at the elderly hands of
pro boxer Ray
Mercer).

To enjoy more exposure in Strikeforce or in Japan, Sylvia will have
to turn the punchline title over to Mariusz
Pudzianowski, the no-necked strongman champion who is pursuing
an improbable career in MMA. In two fights, Pudzianowski has
displayed skill on the level of a very large, very powerful child
throwing a tantrum. If he had an iota of wrestling ability, his
physical pressure would be a nightmare. But as a fighter, he relies
solely on explosive movements and basic brute force; as a novelty
act, he falls somewhere in between Primo Carnera and the Green
Power Ranger.

This is all high risk for very little reward. Sylvia beating
Pudzianowski is an unremarkable chapter in the story of his career.
Not beating him would probably be the end of it.

What It Means: For Sylvia, an
opportunity to display a restored commitment to conditioning; for
Pudzianowski, preserving his value as a carnival attraction.

Might Look Like: A complete mess.

Wild Card: Pudzianowski just fought two
weeks ago. While beginners can maintain a busy fight schedule,
they’re usually much younger. And better. And not facing former
champions.

Who Wins: Unless Sylvia has completely
checked out, Pudzianowski will get a boxing lesson similar to the
jab-fest suffered by equally squat-framed Jeff Monson
back in 2006. Sylvia by TKO. Read more

If “World’s Strongest Man” Mariusz
Pudzianowski had grown up on a wrestling mat, he might be on to
something. Instead, the melon-biceped Pudzianowski is counting on
some contrite striking and pick-up grappling to become a contender.
And according to Pudzianowski himself on LowKick.com, a possible
threat to Fedor
Emelianenko.

"I love the idea of starting my United States experience from
Tim
Sylvia,” he said. “He is a serious opponent and I prepare to
prove everyone that I am the real deal in mixed martial arts. In
two years from now, I would love to fight Fedor
Emelianenko. He will rip my head off if we fight today, but in
two years it could be a different story.”

OK. Look. Pudzianowski is a ball of muscle fiber. You might not get
him in an armbar. His cardiovascular conditioning is impressive in
the strongman competitions, which resembles MMA in its interval
bursts of all-out effort. Being a fantastic athlete can never
hurt.

But there are miles and miles of separation between the muscles
required to launch a beer keg in the air and the muscular memory
that comes from wrestling, grappling, and striking for decades at a
stretch. This may not come into play against a lumbering Sylvia,
but if Pudzianowski decides to test himself against someone whose
body is adapted to fighting, it’s not going to matter that he can
drag a propeller plane behind him. Wrestling strong isn’t gym
strong isn’t Strongman strong. If you’re playing any game but your
own, you’ve got problems. Read more

MiddleEasy.com got their hands on a rough translation of a Polish
newspaper report: while some key details could be getting mangled
in the imported text, there appears to be some notion that James
Bond-esque super-group M-1 Global has made advances toward
no-necked strongman Mariusz
Pudzianowski.

“The Russians would like to download to yourself ‘Pudziana’ in
April,” reads one interpretation. Who could resist such an
offer?

Billed as the World’s Strongest Man, “Pudziana” throttled an
outmatched Marcin
Najman last Friday in Poland, landing a series of ugly, awkward
punches and kicks until the referee peeled him off. It was more
wild-animal attack than fight, but it apparently impressed M-1
enough to float Aleksander
Emelianenko as a possible opponent.

I expect Pudzianowski has handlers to rebuff these kinds of
advances, but if not, he’s about to become the latest in a long
line of ill-qualified attractions that prefer money to common
sense. There have been massively powerful individuals -- Mark Kerr,
Tom
Erikson -- who were able to marry actual skills with their
horsepower -- and still got beat. If you’re constructing a fighter,
are you really going to sacrifice years of grappling ability to add
a few hundred pounds to his deadlift?

Pudzianowski is a novelty act. If he’s treated like one, more power
to him. If he’s treated like a fight athlete, his protein shakes
are going to have to go through a wired jaw. Read more